June 13, 2014

Economic Nationalism Endangers Indonesia

Economic ideas don't get much worse than Prabowo Subianto’s plan to double the rate of Indonesia’s borrowing. The presidential contender wants to boost growth by increasing default risks and returning Southeast Asia's biggest economy to junk status. Why would a smart, former businessman with 41 percent support even suggest such a retrograde policy? To me, it's emblematic of the bad economic ideas pervading Jakarta ahead of next month's runoff election.